ALL NEWS

What you can do right now to stop robocalls

Mar 29, 2019, 8:24 AM | Updated: 8:25 am

Many of the unsolicited calls are from scammers pretending to be tax collectors, charities, or salespeople. Short of throwing your phone in the garbage, there’s no way to avoid them altogether. But wireless providers and smartphone developers offer tools to filter out at least some unwanted calls.

Not all robocalls are fake or illegal: Pharmacies and utility companies, for example, use the technique to reach customers. You can ban telemarketers by registering with the federal “Do Not Call” list — but that won’t stop fake telemarketers or scammers, many of whom have ways to get around spam filters. You can report unsolicited calls to authorities.

Apps and spam filters are far from perfect, and telecom companies are hopeful new call tracing technology will improve their efforts.

Smartphones

Verizon’s Call Filter app is free to download on iPhones and Android devices. The company announced Thursday the app will offer some free features — including auto-blocking calls from known fraudsters, showing warning banners for suspicious calls, and a spam reporting tool.

For $2.99 a month per line, the Call Filter app can use a phonebook feature to look up the names of unknown callers, and it can show a “risk meter” for spam calls.

AT&T’s Call Protect has similar free features and add-ons with a $3.99 per month subscription. (iOS and Android)

T-Mobile phones come loaded with Scam ID, which warns customers about suspicious phone numbers. It’s also free to activate Scam Block, which automatically rejects calls from those numbers. An additional app called Name ID offers premium caller identification for $4 per line monthly. (iOS and Android)

Sprint’s Premium Caller ID, which comes pre-installed, looks up unknown numbers and filters and blocks robocalls for $2.99 per line.

Google’s Pixel phones also give you the option to have your voice assistant answer suspicious calls for you. The phone can transcribe the conversation and lets you decide whether to answer.

Home phone features

There’s not much to be done for pre-1990s landlines, according to experts. But options do exist for most modern digital phone systems, which are offered by internet service providers.

Home phone customers with Comcast’s Xfinity, Verizon Fios, AT&T U-Verse and others can sign up for a free service called Nomorobo. It’s a cloud-based platform that automatically screens for suspected robocallers and telemarketers.

Nomorobo was one of two winners in a 2013 competition, put on by the US government, to develop anti-spam technology.

The company has also rolled out a smartphone app that says it can automatically block scammers, telemarketers and spam texts. The company says the iOS app can also block incoming calls from fake numbers that look very similar to your own, thwarting a technique “neighbor spoofing,” a common tactic among pesky robocallers. Subscriptions cost $1.99 per month. (iOS and Android)

Improving filters

The telecom industry is putting high hopes on a new tool called STIR/SHAKEN to improve the accuracy of spam filters. It’s designed to identify and trace calls that use the “spoofing” technique, which allows spammers to mask their identities and make it look like they’re calling from somewhere else — even your own phone number.

STIR/SHAKEN is the result of a major corporate collaboration. Companies will work together to verify calls across the industry, so that a person using an AT&T wireless phone, for example, can be verified when they call a Comcast landline.

AT&T, Comcast and Verizon this month announced the first successful tests of the system. A long list of providers have pledged to implement the technology by the end of the year. (AT&T owns CNN’s parent company, WarnerMedia.)

It won’t solve everything. Spam filters and regulators will still rely on consumer complaints to hash out which calls are coming from legitimate sources and which come from bad actors.

But it will go a long way toward gathering information on spoofed calls, which have long frustrated anti-robocall efforts, according to Jim McEachern, a senior technology consultant at telecom industry association ATIS.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2019 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.

We want to hear from you.

Have a story idea or tip? Send it to the KSL NewsRadio team here.

All News

The steel frame of the Francis Scott Key Bridge sits on top of the container ship Dali after the br...

Nick Perry

Baltimore bridge collapse puts the highly specialized role of ship’s pilot under the spotlight

The highly specialized role — in which a pilot temporarily takes control of a ship from its regular captain — is coming under the spotlight this week.

7 hours ago

Shopping carts are parked outside a Home Depot in Philadelphia...

MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP Business Writer

Home Depot buying supplier to professional contractors in a deal valued at about $18.25 billion

Home Depot will buy SRS Distribution, a materials provider for professionals, in a deal valued at approximately $18.25 billion.

8 hours ago

Killer Mike poses in the press room with three trophies he won at the 66th annual Grammy Awards on ...

Carter Williams, KSL.com

Recent Grammy winners highlight Ogden Twilight Concert Series lineup

Hip hop star Michael Render, known by his stage name Killer Mike, fresh off of three Grammy Award wins last month, is one of several musical artists set to headline this year's Ogden Twilight Concert Series.

8 hours ago

"Burn Book," by longtime Silicon Valley reporter Kara Swisher is seen, Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, in Sa...

Jeff Caplan

Jeff Caplan’s Minute of News: Telling tales about tech bros

Kara Swisher’s new book paints an ugly picture of Silicon Valley.

11 hours ago

pets...

Curt Gresseth

Don’t surrender pets to a shelter. Send in a pro to reverse bad behavior, says Utah trainer

An expert discusses controlling the unwanted behavior of pets.

11 hours ago

Exclusive video obtained by KSL NewsRadio shows Salt Lake hit-and-run in the Avenues neighborhood. ...

Eric Cabrera

WATCH: Exclusive video shows woman survives Salt Lake City hit and run

KSL NewsRadio has exclusively obtained footage of a Salt Lake City hit-and-run, where a woman was struck while out for a run in the Avenues.

11 hours ago

Sponsored Articles

Mother and cute toddler child in a little fancy wooden cottage, reading a book, drinking tea and en...

Visit Bear Lake

How to find the best winter lodging in Bear Lake, Utah

Winter lodging in Bear Lake can be more limited than in the summer, but with some careful planning you can easily book your next winter trip.

Happy family in winter clothing at the ski resort, winter time, watching at mountains in front of t...

Visit Bear Lake

Ski more for less: Affordable ski resorts near Bear Lake, Utah

Plan your perfect ski getaway in Bear Lake this winter, with pristine slopes, affordable tickets, and breathtaking scenery.

front of the Butch Cassidy museum with a man in a cowboy hat standing in the doorway...

Bear Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau

Looking Back: The History of Bear Lake

The history of Bear Lake is full of fascinating stories. At over 250,000 years old, the lake has seen generations of people visit its shores.

silhouette of a family looking over a lake with a bird in the top corner flying...

Bear Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau

8 Fun Activities To Do in Bear Lake Without Getting in the Water

Bear Lake offers plenty of activities for the whole family to enjoy without having to get in the water. Catch 8 of our favorite activities.

Wellsville Mountains in the spring with a pond in the foreground...

Wasatch Property Management

Advantages of Renting Over Owning a Home

Renting allows you to enjoy luxury amenities and low maintenance without the long-term commitment and responsibilities of owning a home.

Clouds over a red rock vista in Hurricane, Utah...

Wasatch Property Management

Why Southern Utah is a Retirement Paradise

Retirement in southern Utah offers plenty of cultural and recreational opportunities. Find out all that this region has to offer.

What you can do right now to stop robocalls